Method of capturing moving picture and apparatus for reproducing moving picture

ABSTRACT

A method and an apparatus for capturing video data and audio data according to reproduction of a moving picture stream are provided. In an apparatus for reproducing the moving picture, a moving picture feature section at a capture instruction time is determined as a capture section for audio data and video data decoded from the moving picture stream when a capture instruction is input while the moving picture stream is reproduced. Next, audio data and video data corresponding to the capture section among the audio data and the video data decoded from the moving picture stream are captured.

PRIORITY

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) of a Koreanpatent application filed on Sep. 26, 2012 in the Korean IntellectualProperty Office and assigned Serial No. 10-2012-0107240, the entiredisclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an apparatus for reproducing a movingpicture. More particularly, the present invention relates to a methodand an apparatus for capturing a moving picture while the moving pictureis being reproduced.

2. Description of the Related Art

A screen capture function is one of a plurality of functions of a movingpicture reproducing apparatus for reproducing a moving picture from amoving picture stream. In this disclosure, the term “moving picture” isused as including video data and audio data. The screen capture functionis a function capable of capturing a screen displayed according to amoving picture reproduction. When a user inputs a capture instruction bycontrolling the moving picture reproducing apparatus reproducing themoving picture, the moving picture reproducing apparatus captures adisplayed screen at a capture time point. In general, the moving picturereproducing apparatus stores a still image of the display screen in animage file form at the capture time point.

As described above, since the still image at the capture moment iscaptured, a picture quality is not good. Further, since the still imageis not the moving picture, the use of the still image may be limited. Inaddition, only the still image is captured, and audio data of the movingpicture which is being reproduced is not captured.

As a function for improving such matters, a video editing function maybe used. When the video editing function is used, the moving picture ina section set by the user can be captured. Since the moving pictureincludes video and audio, the captured moving picture includes the videodata and the audio data.

However, in order to capture the moving picture by using the videoediting function, the user should directly set a capture sectionwhenever the user desires to capture the moving picture, making thisprocess inconvenient to the user. Further, this process is cumbersome inthat the user should set the capture section by directly selecting astart point and an end point to be captured from the moving picturewhile identifying video and/or audio of the moving picture. In addition,as the user directly selects the start point and the end point to becaptured, it is difficult for the user to accurately set the movingpicture section to be captured as the capture section. That is, it isrequired that the user pay close attention in order not to unnecessarilyinclude a part of the moving picture adjacent to the moving picturesection which the user desires to capture.

Therefore, a need exists for a system and method for addressing theseissues.

The above information is presented as background information only toassist with an understanding of the present disclosure. No determinationhas been made, and no assertion is made, as to whether any of the abovemight be applicable as prior art with regard to the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Aspects of the present invention are to address at least theabove-mentioned problems and/or disadvantages and to provide at leastthe advantages described below. Accordingly, an aspect of the presentinvention is to provide a method and an apparatus for capturing a movingpicture by which a user can conveniently capture the moving picturewhile the moving picture is reproduced.

Another aspect of the present invention is to provide a method and anapparatus for capturing a moving picture in a moving picture featuresection at a capture instruction time while the moving picture isreproduced.

Yet another aspect of the present invention is to provide a method andan apparatus for capturing the moving picture in at least one section ofa video feature section and an audio feature section of the movingpicture at a capture instruction time while the moving picture isreproduced.

In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, a method ofcapturing a moving picture in a moving picture reproducing apparatus isprovided. The method includes determining a moving picture featuresection at a capture instruction time as a capture section for audiodata and video data decoded from the moving picture stream when acapture instruction is input while a moving picture stream isreproduced, and capturing audio data and video data corresponding to thecapture section among the audio data and the video data decoded from themoving picture stream.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, an apparatusfor reproducing a moving picture is provided. The apparatus includes amoving picture reproducer for reproducing a moving picture stream, atemporary memory for temporarily storing audio data and video datadecoded from the moving picture stream, a capture memory for storingcaptured video data and audio data, an input interface for inputting acapture instruction, and a controller for determining a moving picturefeature section at a capture instruction time as a capture section forthe temporarily stored audio data and video data decoded from the movingpicture stream when a capture instruction is input while a movingpicture stream is reproduced, and for capturing audio data and videodata corresponding to the capture section from the temporary memorystoring the audio data and video data decoded from the moving picturestream.

In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, a methodof capturing a moving picture from a moving picture stream beingreproduced by a reproducing apparatus is provided. The method includesinputting a capture instruction, determining a moving picture featuresection at a time of the capture instruction as a capture section foraudio data and video data decoded from the moving picture stream, andcapturing audio data and video data corresponding to the capture sectionincluded in the audio data and the video data decoded from the movingpicture stream.

In accordance with still another aspect of the present invention,capturing apparatus for capturing a moving picture from a moving picturestream being reproduced by a reproducing apparatus is provided. Thecapturing apparatus includes a temporary memory for temporarily storingaudio data and video data decoded from the moving picture stream, aninput interface for inputting a capture instruction, a controller fordetermining a moving picture feature section at a capture instructiontime as a capture section for the stored audio data and video data, andfor capturing audio data and video data corresponding to the capturesection from the temporarily stored audio data and video data decodedfrom the moving picture stream, and a capture memory for storing thecaptured video data and audio data from the temporarily stored audiodata and video data decoded from the moving picture stream.

Other aspects, advantages, and salient features of the invention willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detaileddescription, which, taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings,discloses exemplary embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of certainexemplary embodiments of the present invention will be more apparentfrom the following description taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a moving picture reproducing apparatusincluding a moving picture capture function according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of capturing a moving picture according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of detecting a video feature sectionaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of detecting an audio feature sectionaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of determining a capture section according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 6A to 6C illustrate examples of determining a capture sectionaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 7A and 7B are flowcharts of determining a capture sectionaccording to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and

FIGS. 8A to 8F illustrate examples of determining a capture sectionaccording to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Throughout the drawings, it should be noted that like reference numbersare used to depict the same or similar elements, features, andstructures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings isprovided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of exemplaryembodiments of the invention as defined by the claims and theirequivalents. It includes various specific details to assist in thatunderstanding but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary.Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize thatvarious changes and modifications of the embodiments described hereincan be made without departing from the scope and spirit of theinvention. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions andconstructions may be omitted for clarity and conciseness.

The terms and words used in the following description and claims are notlimited to the bibliographical meanings, but, are merely used by theinventor to enable a clear and consistent understanding of theinvention. Accordingly, it should be apparent to those skilled in theart that the following description of exemplary embodiments of thepresent invention is provided for illustration purpose only and not forthe purpose of limiting the invention as defined by the appended claimsand their equivalents.

It is to be understood that the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the”include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.Thus, for example, reference to “a component surface” includes referenceto one or more of such surfaces.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will bedescribed with reference to examples to which a moving picturereproducing apparatus is applied. However, the exemplary embodiments ofthe present invention may be applied to other apparatuses having asimilar background. Further, those skilled in the art may apply theexemplary embodiments of the present invention to other apparatusesthrough variations without departing from the scope of the presentinvention. That is, the present invention may be applied to a digitalTeleVision (TV) receiver or a desktop computer, a laptop computer, atablet computer, a camcorder, a digital camera, a smart phone and thelike which have a moving picture reproducing capability as well as adedicated moving picture reproducing apparatus such as a Digital VideoDisc (DVD) player or a Portable Multimedia Player (PMP) and the like.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a moving picture reproducing apparatusincluding a moving picture capture function according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the moving picture reproducing apparatus includes amoving picture reproducer 100, an output interface 102, a temporarymemory 104, an input interface 106, a controller 108, a moving pictureencoder 110, and a capture memory 112. In a general moving picturereproducing apparatus to which the present invention is applied,components which are not required for describing the moving picturecapture function according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention are not illustrated in FIG. 1 and thus omitted.

The moving picture reproducer 100 decodes and reproduces a movingpicture stream. The moving picture reproducer 100 includes a movingpicture decoder 114 and an audio/video processor 116. The moving picturedecoder 114 decodes the moving picture stream to generate audio data andvideo data. The audio/video processor 116 generates a video signal foroutputting a screen according to the decoded video data and outputs thevideo signal to the output interface 102, and generates an audio signalfor outputting audio according to the decoded audio data and outputs theaudio signal to the output interface 102. Similarly to the generalmoving picture reproducing apparatus, the moving picture decoder 114 maybe implemented by a hardware or a software executed by the controller108.

The output interface 102 is a user interface for providing the user withan output of the moving picture reproducing apparatus. The outputinterface 102 includes output devices such as a speaker and a displaywhich are not shown. The output interface 102 outputs the audio and thevideo according to the audio signal and the video signal generated bythe audio/video processor 116. Further, the output interface 102 alsooutputs various screens according to an operation of the controller 102.

The temporary memory 104 temporarily stores the audio data and videodata decoded by the moving picture decoder 114. The temporary memory 104is a memory of a First In First Out (FIFO) type, where earliest storedaudio data and video data are deleted whenever new audio data and videodata are stored. Accordingly, the audio data and the video data storedin the temporary memory 104 are continuously updated in accordance withreproduction of the moving picture stream. As described below, thecontroller 108 determines a capture section for the audio data and thevideo data temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 and capturesthe audio data and the video data in the determined capture section.Accordingly, an amount of the audio data and the video data temporarilystored in the temporary memory 104 is set to an amount corresponding toa reproduction time required for determining the capture section andcapturing the moving picture. However, as the amount of the audio dataand the video data temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 arelarger, a storage capacity of the temporary memory 104 may becomelarger, a time spent on determining the capture section may beincreased, and the capture section may become excessively long.Particularly, when the captured moving picture is desired to be usedinstead of the still image captured according to the general screencapture function, the captured moving picture having a long reproductiontime is not desirable. By considering such matters, the amount of theaudio data and the video data temporarily stored in the temporary memory104 is preferably set to an amount ranging from several seconds todozens of seconds. A flash memory or a Hard Disk Drive (HDD) may be usedas the temporary memory 104.

The input interface 106 is a user interface through which the movingpicture reproducing apparatus receives an input from the user. The inputinterface 106 provides the controller 108 with inputs by which the userinstructs various operations of the moving picture reproducing apparatusaccording a control of the user. The input through the input interface106 includes a capture instruction, and a capture condition setting. Theinput interface 106 may include input devices such as a keypad, akeyboard, or a button.

The display included in the output interface 102 may be a touch screendisplay. In this case, the touch screen display is included in the inputdevice of the input interface 106 as well. The touch screen displayprovides a user interface through a screen. The touch screen displaydisplays a graphic and a text on the screen, and detects and responds toa contact on the screen. The apparatus employing the touch screendisplay can display one or more of a soft key, a menu, and other userinterface objects on the screen. The user can make an input related tothe user interface object to the apparatus employing the touch screendisplay by being in contact with the screen in a position correspondingto the user interface object.

The moving picture encoder 110 encodes the audio data and the video datacaptured by the controller 108 into a moving picture file. Similarly tothe moving picture decoder 114, the moving picture encoder 110 may beimplemented by the hardware or the software executed by the controller108. A type of moving picture file format may be selectively set by theuser from moving picture file formats supportable by the moving pictureencoder 110.

The capture memory 112 stores the moving picture file encoded by themoving picture encoder 110. The flash memory or the HDD may be used asthe capture memory 112.

The controller 108 controls operations of the moving picture reproducer100, the output interface 102, the temporary memory 104, the inputinterface 106, the moving picture encoder 110, and the capture memory112. As the controller 108, a processor (or controller) adopted as amain controller in the general moving picture reproducing apparatus canadditionally execute the moving capture function according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention. Unlike the above, adedicated processor (or controller) for executing only the movingpicture capture function according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention may be used, or dedicated hardware may be implemented.

When a capture instruction is input from the user through the inputinterface 106 while the moving picture stream is reproduced by themoving picture reproducer 100 and then output through the outputinterface 102, the controller 108 executes the moving picture capturefunction according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.The controller 108 determines a moving picture feature section at acapture instruction time as a capture section for the audio data and thevideo data temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 and capturesthe audio data and the video data in the capture section.

Further, the controller 108 encodes the captured audio data and videodata into a moving picture file by the moving picture encoder 110 andstores the moving picture file in the capture memory 112. In an actualimplementation of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, ifit is not required to convert the captured audio data and video data tothe moving picture file, it is also not required to use the movingpicture encoder 110. In this case, the audio data and the video datacaptured by the controller 108 are stored in the capture memory 112without being encoded.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of capturing the moving picture according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, when a capture instruction is input from the userthrough the input interface 106 in step 202 while the moving picturestream is reproduced by the moving picture reproducer 100 and outputthrough the output interface 102 in step 200, the controller 108executes the moving picture function in steps 204 to 206. In step 204,the controller 108 determines a moving picture feature section at acapture instruction time as a capture section for audio data and videodata temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104.

The moving picture feature section at the capture instruction timecorresponds to a section, which includes a moving picture at the captureinstruction time and a moving picture including at least a part ofmoving picture features at the capture instruction time among movingpictures being continuous with the moving picture at the captureinstruction time.

The moving picture feature may include a video feature and an audiofeature. The video feature may be, for example, a background, an object,a face of a person included in a screen at the capture instruction time.The audio feature may be, for example, voice, and music included in anaudio at the capture instruction time.

One of the video feature section, the audio feature section, and asetting time section may be detected as the moving picture featuresection. Accordingly, the capture section may be determined as one ofthe video feature section, the audio feature section, and the settingtime section. The video feature section may be a section, which includesa video at the capture instruction time and a video including at least apart of video features at the capture instruction time among videosbeing continuous with the video at the capture instruction time. Theaudio feature section may be a section, which includes an audio at thecapture instruction time and an audio including at least a part of audiofeatures at the capture instruction among audios being continuous withthe audio at the capture instruction time. The setting time section is asection for the setting time, and may be a section corresponding to apredetermined reproduction time including the capture instruction time.Accordingly, at least some features of the audio feature and the videofeature at the capture instruction time may be included only in somesection instead of entire setting time sections. However, since thesetting time section includes the capture instruction time, at leastsome section of the setting time section includes at least some featuresof the audio feature and the video feature at the capture instructiontime. Each of the video feature section, the audio feature section, andthe setting time section is detected by the controller 108.

The video feature section is detected from the video data temporarilystored in the temporary memory 104 by the controller 108. The videofeature section may be detected based on at least one preset feature ofvarious video features at the capture instruction time as describedbelow. The audio feature section is detected from the audio datatemporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 by the controller 108.The audio feature section may be detected based on at least one presetfeature of various audio features at the capture instruction time asdescribed below. The setting time section is detected from thereproduction time for the video data and the audio data temporarilystored in the temporary memory 104 by the controller 108. A setting timeof the setting time section may be set by the user or may be set to adefault.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of detecting the video feature sectionaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3shows an example of detecting the video feature section based on an I(Intra Frame Picture) frame related to a video frame at the captureinstruction time. The video frame at the capture instruction time refersto a frame which is being reproduced at the capture instruction time.

In general, a video stream of the moving picture stream consists ofconsecutive video frames as illustrated in FIG. 3, and types of videoframes include an I frame, a P (Predicted Frame Picture) frame and a B(Bi-directional Frame Picture) frame. The I frame refers to a frame of ascreen encoded with only information of one screen without predictionfor screens of previous and next frames, the P frame refers to a frameof a screen generated from the I frame or a previous P frame throughprediction, and the B frame refers to a frame of a screen generatedthrough bi-directional prediction of each of the I frame and the Pframe.

Accordingly, P frames and B frames associated with one I framecorrespond to the video feature of the corresponding I frame. That is,screen of one I frame, screens of P frames associated with thecorresponding I frame, and screens of B frames associated with thecorresponding I frame include at least some features of any one frame.As illustrated in FIG. 3, when the video frame at the captureinstruction time is the B frame 306, the I frame associated with the Bframe 306 is the I frame 302. In this case, the I frame 302 and videoframes associated with the I frame 302 correspond to screens with atleast some features of the B frame 306. Video frames associated with theI frame 302 represent P frames and B frames located between the I frame302 and a next I frame 304.

Accordingly, when the capture instruction time is defined as illustratedin FIG. 3, the controller 108 may be set to detect the I frame 302 andthe video frames associated with the I frame 302 as the video featuresection.

Meanwhile, one moving picture consists of one or more scenes, andscreens of the I frames adjacent to each other in one scene commonlyhave at least some video features or may become screens similar to orassociated with each other. For example, when a scene change is made ata scene change time illustrated in FIG. 3, I frames 300 to 304 after thescene change are included in one scene, so that the I frames 300 to 304may commonly have at least some video features or become screens similarto or associated with each other. Since detecting the scene change is atechnique generally known to those skilled in the art, a detaileddescription will be omitted.

Accordingly, when the capture instruction time is defined as illustratedin FIG. 3, the controller 108 may be set to detect the I frames 300 to304 included in one scene and video frames associated with the I frames300 to 304 as the video feature section instead of the video featuresection illustrated in FIG. 3.

In an actual implementation of an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention, when the video feature section is detected based on the Iframe similarly to FIG. 3, the number of I frames included in the videofeature section may be preset by the user. Such a setting may beperformed by the user through a menu, an icon and the like provided bythe input interface 106 similarly to general user setting modes. Thenumber of I frames may be set to a default in case the user does notseparately set the number of I frames.

As another example, the video feature section may be detected based on aface included in the screen at the capture instruction time. When theface is detected from the screen at the capture instruction time, thecontroller 108 can detect consecutive video frames including thedetected face as the video feature section. That is, the controller 108can detect consecutive video frames including the detected face as thevideo feature section among the video frame at the capture instructiontime and video frames before and after the capture instruction time. Atthis time, a plurality of faces may be included in the screen at thecapture instruction time. In this case, the controller 108 can detectvideo frames consecutively including at least one face of the detectedfaces as the video feature section from the screen at the captureinstruction time. Since detecting the faces included in the screen is atechnique generally known to those skilled in the art, a detaileddescription will be omitted.

Although two examples of detecting the video feature section based onthe video feature have been described, they are only examples forhelping understanding of the present invention, and the presentinvention is not limited thereto. It may be understood by those skilledin the art that the video feature section can be detected based on othertypes of video feature such as a background, an object or the like otherthan the two examples.

The controller 108 detects one preset video feature section amongvarious types of video feature sections including the above describedexamples from the video data temporarily stored in the temporary memory104. Unlike the above, the controller 108 may be set to control thevideo feature section based on two or more types of video feature. Forexample, the controller 108 may be set to detect the video featuresection based on both the background and the face at the captureinstruction time. That is, frames where both the background and the faceat the instruction time are all detected may be detected as the videofeature section. Meanwhile, the face may not be included in the screenat the capture instruction time. By considering such a matter, the videofeature section is detected first based on the face, and when the faceis not detected, the video feature section may be detected based on theI frame.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of detecting the audio feature sectionaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4shows an example of detecting the audio feature section based on anaudio at the capture instruction time, and an audio section including anaudio at the capture instruction time is detected as the audio featuresection in the example. The audio at the capture instruction time refersto an audio which is being reproduced at the capture instruction time.

In general, a noise section and an audio section may be divided fromconsecutive audio signals. For example, when an audio signal waveformaccording to audio data is defined as illustrated FIG. 4, a sectionwhere only the noise exists is the noise section, and a section where anactual audio exists is the audio section. Accordingly, when the captureinstruction time is defined as illustrated in FIG. 4, the controller 108can detect the audio section including the audio at the captureinstruction time as the audio feature section as illustrated in FIG. 4.Since detecting the audio section from the consecutive audio signals isa technique generally known to those skilled in the art, a detaileddescription will be omitted.

As another example, the audio feature section may be detected based on avoice at the capture instruction time. The controller 108 can detect avoice section including a voice at the capture instruction time as theaudio feature section. In general, a voice frequency band used for voicetransmission or signal processing ranges from 200 Hz to 3,000 Hz.Accordingly, the controller 108 can detect the voice section where audiodata of the voice frequency is continuous as the audio feature sectionamong the audio data before and after the capture instruction time.

As still another example, the audio feature section may be detectedbased on an audio frequency at the capture instruction time. Thecontroller 108 can detect a predetermined frequency range sectionincluding the audio frequency at the capture instruction time as theaudio feature section. That is, the section where differences betweenthe audio frequency at the capture instruction time and frequencieswithin a predetermined range based on the audio frequency at the captureinstruction time, for example, frequencies within 50% are continuous maybe detected as the audio feature section.

Although three examples of detecting the audio feature section based onthe audio feature have been described, they are only for helpingunderstanding of the present invention, and the present invention is notlimited thereto. It may be understood by those skilled in the art thatthe audio feature section can be detected based on other types of audiofeature such as an instrument sound or the like other than the threeexamples described above.

The controller 108 detects one preset audio feature section amongvarious types of audio feature sections including the above describedexamples from the audio data temporarily stored in the temporary memory104. Unlike the above, the controller 108 may be set to control theaudio feature section based on two or more types of audio feature. Forexample, the controller 108 may be set to detect the audio featuresection based on both the voice and the instrument sound at the captureinstruction time. That is, the audio section where both the voice andthe instrument sound at the capture instruction time are all detectedmay be detected as the audio feature section. Meanwhile, the voice maynot be included in the audio at the capture instruction time. Byconsidering such a matter, the audio feature section is detected firstbased on the voice, and when the voice is not detected, the audiofeature section may be detected based on the audio.

It may be set such that only one section of the video feature sectionand the audio feature section is fixedly detected as the moving picturefeature section. However, one or both of the video feature section andthe audio feature section may not be detected according to types ofvideo feature and audio feature set to be detected and contents of themoving picture to be captured. For example, when it is set such that thevideo feature section is detected based on the I frame, there may be themoving picture where the I frame does not exist among the video datatemporarily stored in the temporary memory 104. As an example, there maybe a moving picture filming a lecture. In an extreme case, only one Iframe may exist in an entire moving picture. As another example, when itis set such that the audio feature section is detected based on theaudio, there may be the moving picture where the voice does not existamong the audio data temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104. Asan example, there may be a moving picture filming scenery.

By considering such a matter, it is preferable but not necessary to setin advance a capture priority for the video feature, the audio feature,and the setting time which are the basis to determine the capturesection and then attempt to sequentially detect the video feature, theaudio feature, and the setting time one by one according to thepriority. As described above, the setting time section is the sectioncorresponding to the predetermined reproduction time including thecapture instruction time. A period between the capture instruction timeand the start point of the setting time section and a period between thecapture instruction time and the end point of the setting time sectionmay be freely preset by the user or may be set to a default. In thefollowing description, it will be described as an example that the startpoint of the setting time section is a point before ½ of thepredetermined reproduction time from the capture instruction time, andthe end point of the setting time section is a point after ½ of thepredetermined reproduction time from the capture instruction time.Further, a period between the capture instruction time and the pointbefore ½ of the predetermined reproduction time is referred to as a“first half”, and a period between the capture instruction time and thepoint after ½ of the predetermined reproduction time is referred to as a“second half”. Since the setting time section may be detected fromreproduction time information, the setting time section can be alwaysdetected even though the video feature section or the audio featuresection are not detected. The capture priority may be set by the userthrough the menu, the icon and the like provided by the input interface106 similarly to the user setting modes. The capture priority may be setto a default in case the capture priority is not separately set by theuser.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of determining the capture section according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention. Steps illustrated in FIG.5 show detailed examples of step 204 of FIG. 2.

Referring to FIG. 5, the controller 108 identifies a first capturepriority in step 500. Further, the controller 108 proceeds to one ofsteps 504, 512, and 518 from step 502 according to the identifiedcapture priority.

When the identified capture priority is the audio feature, thecontroller 108 attempts to detect the audio feature section from theaudio data temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 in step 504.Next, the controller 108 identifies whether the audio feature section isdetected in step 506. When the audio feature section is detected, thecontroller 108 determines the detected audio feature section as thecapture section in step 508.

When the identified capture priority is the video feature, thecontroller 108 attempts to detect the video feature section from thereproduction time information associated with the video data temporarilystored in the temporary memory 104 in step 512. Next, the controller 108identifies whether the video feature section is detected in step 514.When the video feature section is detected, the controller 108determines the detected video feature section as the capture section instep 516.

When the identified capture priority is the setting time, the controller108 detects the setting time section from the audio data and the videodata temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 in step 518. Next,the controller 108 determines the detected setting time section as thecapture section in step 520.

When it is identified that the audio feature section is not detected instep 506 or it is identified that the video feature section is notdetected in step 514, the controller 108 proceeds to step 502 afteridentifying a next capture priority in step 510. Accordingly, when thecurrently identified capture priority is the audio feature section orthe video feature section, an attempt to detect a section having a nextcapture priority is made if the corresponding section is not detected,and a detected section is determined as the capture section if thecorresponding section is detected.

Therefore, one of the audio feature section, the video feature section,and the setting time section is determined as the capture sectionaccording to the preset capture priority.

FIGS. 6A to 6C illustrate examples of determining the capture sectionaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6Ashows an example where the detected audio feature section is determinedas the capture section.

Referring to FIG. 6A, a start point and an end point of the audiofeature section at the capture instruction time are determined as astart point and an end point of the capture section, respectively.

FIG. 6B shows an example where the detected video feature section isdetermined as the capture section. Referring to FIG. 6B, a start pointand an end point of the video feature section at the capture instructiontime are determined as a start point and an end point of the capturesection, respectively.

FIG. 6C shows an example where the detected setting time section isdetermined as the capture section. Referring to FIG. 6C, a start pointand an end point of the setting time section including the captureinstruction time are determined as a start point and an end point of thecapture section, respectively.

Referring back to FIG. 2, after the capture section is determined asdescribed above, the controller 108 captures audio data and video datacorresponding to the capture section from the audio data and the videodata temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 in step 206 and thenreturns to step 200.

Accordingly, when there is the capture instruction while the movingpicture is reproduced, audio data and video data corresponding to themoving picture feature section at the capture instruction time arecaptured.

FIGS. 7A and 7B are flowcharts of determining the capture sectionaccording to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, andare consecutive by reference numeral “A”. Steps illustrated in FIGS. 7Aand 7B show other detailed examples of step 204 of FIG. 2. FIGS. 7A and7B shows an exemplary embodiment where one of the audio feature section,the video feature section, and the setting time section is determined asthe capture section or a combination of two sections is determined asthe capture section. That is, one of the start points of the audiofeature section, the video feature section, and the setting time sectionis determined as the start point of the capture section, and one of theend points of the audio feature section, the video feature section, andthe setting time section is determined as the end point of the capturesection. Further, the capture priority is set for the video feature, theaudio feature, and the setting time which are the basis to determine thestart point and the end point of the capture section, and then the startand end points are sequentially detected according to the priority. Thecapture start point priority and the capture end point priority may beset by the user through the menu, the icon and the like provided by theinput interface 106 similarly to the general user setting modes. Thecapture start point priority and the capture end point priority may beset to a default in case the capture start point priority and thecapture end point priority are not separately set by the user.

Referring to FIGS. 7A and 7B, the controller 108 identifies a firstcapture start point priority in step 700. Further, the controller 108proceeds to one of steps 704, 712, and 718 from step 702 according tothe identified capture start point priority.

When the identified capture start point priority is the audio feature,the controller 108 attempts to detect the audio feature section from theaudio data temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 in step 704.Next, the controller 108 identifies whether the audio feature section isdetected in step 706. When the audio feature is detected, the controller108 determines the start point of the detected audio feature section asthe start point of the capture section in step 708.

When the identified capture start point priority is the video feature,the controller 108 attempts to detect the video feature section from thevideo data temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 in step 712.Next, the controller identifies whether the video feature section isdetected in step 714. When the video feature section is detected, thecontroller 108 determines the start point of the detected video featuresection as the start point of the capture section in step 716.

When the identified capture start point priority is the setting time,the controller 108 detects the setting time section from thereproduction time information associated with the audio data and thevideo data temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 in step 718.Next, the controller 108 determines the start point of the detectedsetting time section as the start point of the capture section in step720.

When it is identified that the audio feature section is not detected instep 706 or it is identified that the video feature section is notdetected in step 714, the controller 108 proceeds to step 702 afteridentifying a next capture start priority in step 710. Accordingly, whenthe currently identified capture start point priority is the start pointof the audio feature section or the start point of the video featuresection, an attempt to detect a section having a next capture startpoint priority is made if the corresponding section is not detected, andthe start point of the detected section is determined as the start pointof the capture section if the corresponding section is detected.

After the start point of the capture section is determined as describedabove, the controller 108 identifies a first capture end point priorityin step 722. Further, the controller 108 proceeds to one of steps 726,734, and 740 from step 724 according to the identified capture end pointpriority.

When the identified capture end point priority is the audio feature, thecontroller 108 attempts to detect the audio feature section from theaudio data temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 in step 726.Next, the controller 108 identifies whether the audio feature section isdetected in step 728. When the audio feature is detected, the controller108 determines the end point of the detected audio feature section asthe end point of the capture section in step 730.

When the identified capture end point priority is the video feature, thecontroller 108 attempts to detect the video feature section from thevideo data temporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 in step 734.Next, the controller identifies whether the video feature section isdetected in step 736. When the video feature section is detected, thecontroller 108 determines the end point of the detected video featuresection as the end point of the capture section in step 738.

When the identified capture end point priority is the setting time, thecontroller 108 detects the setting time section from the reproductiontime information associated with the audio data and the video datatemporarily stored in the temporary memory 104 in step 740. Next, thecontroller 108 determines the end point of the detected setting timesection as the end point of the capture section in step 742.

When it is identified that the audio feature section is not detected instep 728 or it is identified that the video feature section is notdetected in step 736, the controller 108 proceeds to step 724 afteridentifying a next capture end point priority in step 732. Accordingly,when the currently identified capture end point priority is the endpoint of the audio feature section or the end point of the video featuresection, an attempt to detect a section having a next capture end pointpriority is made if the corresponding section is not detected, and theend point of the detected section is determined as the end point of thecapture section if the corresponding section is detected.

Accordingly, a combination of one start point of the audio featuresection, the video feature section, and the setting time section and oneend point of the audio feature section, the video feature section, andthe setting time section is determined as the capture section accordingto the preset capture start point priority and capture end pointpriority Therefore, one capture section of the three capture sections asillustrated in FIGS. 6A to 6C and six capture sections as illustrated inFIGS. 8A to 8F are determined.

FIGS. 8A to 8F illustrate examples of determining the capture sectionaccording to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG.8A shows an example where the start point of the detected video featuresection and the end point of the detected audio feature section aredetermined as the start point and the end point of the capture section,respectively. FIG. 8B illustrates an example where the start point ofthe detected audio feature section and the end point of the detectedvideo feature section are determined as the start point and the endpoint of the capture section, respectively. FIG. 8C shows an examplewhere the start point of the detected setting time section and the endpoint of the detected audio feature section are determined as the startpoint and the end point of the capture section, respectively. FIG. 8Dshows an example where the start point of the detected audio featuresection and the end point of the detected setting time section aredetermined as the start point and the end point of the capture section,respectively. FIG. 8E shows an example where the start point of thedetected setting time section and the end point of the detected videofeature section are determined as the start point and the end point ofthe capture section, respectively. FIG. 8F shows an example where thestart point of the detected video feature section and the end point ofthe detected setting time section are determined as the start point andthe end point of the capture section, respectively.

According to the exemplary embodiments of the present inventiondescribed above, the moving picture in the section corresponding to thefeature of the moving picture which is being reproduced at the captureinstruction time is captured. Accordingly, when the user instructs tocapture a desired scene while the moving picture of contents such as adrama and a movie is being reproduced, the moving picture in the movingpicture feature section at the capture instruction time is automaticallycaptured. Therefore, the user can capture the moving picture showingfeature of a dialog part, an audio or video part, or a part that theuser desires to repeatedly study and the like through only a simplecontrol of inputting the capture instruction. Accordingly, the user doesnot need to directly set the capture section whenever the user desiresto capture video and/or audio from the moving picture. Further, the userdoes not need to set the capture section by selecting the start pointand the end point of the moving picture to be captured while identifyinga video and/or audio of the moving picture, which causes inconvenienceto the user.

In addition, since the capture in a short section may be easilyperformed, the user can easily share the captured part with anotheruser. Furthermore, since a shortly captured moving picture utilizes avery small amount of memory, the captured moving picture can be used invarious places where a still image is mainly used, which creates newuses to the moving picture. For example, the shortly captured movingpicture of the user can be uploaded to a part of a contact number,various Social Networking Services (SNSs), a blog and the like where apicture of the user, an icon and the like are registered.

When the moving picture capturing method according to the exemplaryembodiments of the present invention is used in a mobile device, themobile device can use a program to capture the moving picture bydownloading the program (for example, application) from a remotelylocated program providing apparatus (for example, server) or installingthe program and then executing the program. That is, when the programfor capturing the moving picture is installed in the mobile device, theprogram is executed in the mobile device and then provides the movingpicture capture. The program providing apparatus transmits the programto the mobile device automatically or in response to a programtransmission request from the mobile device. At this time, for themobile device, the program providing apparatus can additionally performthe determination on whether the user subscribes to a service, a userauthentication, a payment information identification and the like. Theprogram providing apparatus may include a communication unit forcommunicating with the mobile device wirelessly or through a wire, astorage medium for storing the program, and a controller fortransmitting the program to the mobile device through the communicationunit. The storage medium may be located inside or outside the programproviding apparatus.

Although concrete exemplary embodiments of the present invention havebeen described in the detailed description of the present invention,various modifications can be made to the exemplary embodiments withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention. For example, althoughthe example of capturing the audio data and the video data from themoving picture stream has been described in the exemplary embodiments ofthe present invention, the present invention can be applied to a casewhere the audio data is captured from the audio stream.

Further, the exemplary embodiments of the present invention may beimplemented in a form of hardware, or a combination of hardware andsoftware. Such software may be stored in a non-transitory volatile ornonvolatile storage device such as a Read Only Memory (ROM), a RandomAccess Memory (RAM) or the like, or a storage medium, which can beoptically or magnetically recorded and read by a machine, such as aCompact Disc (CD), a Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), a magnetic disc, amagnetic tape or the like regardless of, for example, deletionpossibility or re-recording possibility. Accordingly, an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention includes a program including a codefor implementing the apparatus and the method described in the claimsand a non-transitory machine (computer and the like)-readable storagemedium for storing the program. Further, the program may beelectronically transferred through a predetermined medium such as acommunication signal transmitted through wired or wireless connection,and an exemplary embodiment of the present invention properly includesequivalents.

Therefore, the scope of the present invention should be defined byequivalents of the claims as well as the claims, but is not limited tothe above described exemplary embodiments.

While the invention has been shown and described with reference tocertain exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by thoseskilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be madetherein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention asdefined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of capturing a moving picture in amoving picture reproducing apparatus, the method comprising: determininga moving picture feature section at a capture instruction time as acapture section for audio data and video data decoded from a movingpicture stream when a capture instruction is input while the movingpicture stream is reproduced; and capturing audio data and video datacorresponding to the capture section among the audio data and the videodata decoded from the moving picture stream.
 2. The method of claim 1,wherein the moving picture feature section is a section which includes amoving picture at the capture instruction time and a moving pictureincluding at least a part of moving picture features at the captureinstruction time among moving pictures being continuous with the movingpicture at the capture instruction time.
 3. The method of claim 1,wherein the determining of the moving picture feature section comprises:detecting one section of a video feature section, an audio featuresection, and a setting time section from the audio data and the videodata decoded from the moving picture stream according to a presetcapture priority; and determining the detected section as the capturesection, wherein the video feature section is a section which includes avideo at the capture instruction time and a video including at least apart of video features at the capture instruction time among videosbeing continuous with the video at the capture instruction, the audiofeature section is a section which includes an audio at the captureinstruction time and an audio including at least a part of audiofeatures at the capture instruction among audios being continuous withthe audio at the capture instruction time, and the setting time sectionis a section corresponding to a predetermined reproduction timeincluding the capture instruction time.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein the determining of the moving picture feature section comprises:detecting a start point of one section of a video feature section, anaudio feature section, a setting time section from the audio data andthe video data decoded from the moving picture stream according to apreset capture start point priority; and determining the detected startpoint as a start point of the capture section; detecting an end point ofone section of the video feature section, the audio feature section, thesetting time section from the audio data and the video data decoded fromthe moving picture stream according to a preset capture end pointpriority; and determining the detected end point as an end point of thecapture section, wherein the video feature section is a section whichincludes a video at the capture instruction time and a video includingat least a part of video features at the capture instruction time amongvideos being continuous with the video at the capture instruction, theaudio feature section is a section which includes an audio at thecapture instruction time and an audio including at least a part of audiofeatures at the capture instruction among audios being continuous withthe audio at the capture instruction time, and the setting time sectionis a section corresponding to a predetermined reproduction timeincluding the capture instruction time.
 5. The method of claim 3,wherein the video feature section is a section corresponding toconsecutive video frames including at least one I frame among videoframes of a scene including a video frame at the capture instructiontime.
 6. The method of claim 3, wherein the video feature section is asection corresponding to consecutive video frames including a facedetected at the capture instruction time.
 7. The method of claim 3,wherein the audio feature section is an audio section including an audioat the capture instruction time.
 8. The method of claim 3, wherein theaudio feature section is a voice section including a voice at thecapture instruction time.
 9. The method of claim 3, wherein the audiofeature section is a predetermined frequency range section including anaudio frequency at the capture instruction time.
 10. The method of claim1, further comprising encoding the captured audio data and video datainto a moving picture file.
 11. An apparatus for reproducing a movingpicture, the apparatus comprising: a moving picture reproducer forreproducing a moving picture stream; a temporary memory for temporarilystoring audio data and video data decoded from the moving picturestream; a capture memory for storing captured video data and audio data;an input interface for inputting a capture instruction; and a controllerfor determining a moving picture feature section at a captureinstruction time as a capture section for the temporarily stored audiodata and video data decoded from the moving picture stream when thecapture instruction is input while the moving picture stream isreproduced, and for capturing audio data and video data corresponding tothe capture section from the temporary memory temporarily storing theaudio data and video data decoded from the moving picture stream. 12.The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the moving picture feature section isa section which includes a moving picture at the capture instructiontime and a moving picture including at least a part of moving picturefeatures at the capture instruction time among moving pictures beingcontinuous with the moving picture at the capture instruction time. 13.The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the controller detects one section ofa video feature section, an audio feature section, and a setting timesection from the audio data and the video data decoded from the movingpicture stream according to a preset capture priority, and determinesthe detected section as the capture section, wherein the video featuresection is a section which includes a video at the capture instructiontime and a video including at least a part of video features at thecapture instruction time among videos being continuous with the video atthe capture instruction, the audio feature section is a section whichincludes an audio at the capture instruction time and an audio includingat least a part of audio features at the capture instruction amongaudios being continuous with the audio at the capture instruction time,and the setting time section is a section corresponding to apredetermined reproduction time including the capture instruction time.14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the controller detects a startpoint of one section of a video feature section, an audio featuresection, a setting time section according to a preset capture startpoint priority and an end point of one section according to a presetcapture end point priority from the audio data and the video datadecoded from the moving picture stream, and determines the detectedstart point and end point as a start point and an end point of thecapture section, wherein the video feature section is a section whichincludes a video at the capture instruction time and a video includingat least a part of video features at the capture instruction time amongvideos being continuous with the video at the capture instruction, theaudio feature section is a section which includes an audio at thecapture instruction time and an audio including at least a part of audiofeatures at the capture instruction among audios being continuous withthe audio at the capture instruction time, and the setting time sectionis a section corresponding to a predetermined reproduction timeincluding the capture instruction time.
 15. The apparatus of claim 13,wherein the controller detects a section corresponding to consecutivevideo frames including at least one I frame among video frames of ascene including a video frame at the capture instruction time as thevideo feature section.
 16. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein thecontroller detects a section corresponding to consecutive video framesincluding a face detected at the capture instruction time as the videofeature section.
 17. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the controllerdetects an audio section including an audio at the capture instructiontime as the audio feature section.
 18. The apparatus of claim 13,wherein the controller detects a voice section including a voice at thecapture instruction time as the audio feature section.
 19. The apparatusof claim 13, wherein the controller detects a predetermined frequencyrange section including an audio frequency at the capture instructiontime as the audio feature section.
 20. The apparatus of claim 11,further comprising a moving picture encoder for encoding the capturedaudio data and video data into a moving picture file.
 21. A method ofcapturing a moving picture from a moving picture stream being reproducedby a reproducing apparatus, the method comprising: inputting a captureinstruction; determining a moving picture feature section at a time ofthe capture instruction as a capture section for audio data and videodata decoded from the moving picture stream; and capturing audio dataand video data corresponding to the capture section included in theaudio data and the video data decoded from the moving picture stream.22. A capturing apparatus for capturing a moving picture from a movingpicture stream being reproduced by a reproducing apparatus, thecapturing apparatus comprising: a temporary memory for temporarilystoring audio data and video data decoded from the moving picturestream; an input interface for inputting a capture instruction; acontroller for determining a moving picture feature section at a captureinstruction time as a capture section for the stored audio data andvideo data, and for capturing audio data and video data corresponding tothe capture section from the temporarily stored audio data and videodata decoded from the moving picture stream; and a capture memory forstoring the captured video data and audio data from the temporarilystored audio data and video data decoded from the moving picture stream.